In Sickness and In Sickness
by Caz Malfoy
Summary: Dylan Fic: Dylan and Ellie are ill and Jack's got to take care of them by himself...


******Title: **In Sickness and In Sickness**  
****Fandom:** Torchwood**  
****Rating:** FRT**  
****Pairing:** Jack/Ianto**  
****Summary:** Dylan and Ellie are ill and Jack's got to take care of them by himself...**  
****Spoilers:** If you've seen all of New Who and Torchwood, you're good.  
**Author's note:** This is my help_haiti fic for teachwriteslash who was the winning bid on my Dylan lot.

**x**

Looking back on the past few days, Jack could pinpoint exactly where things had gone wrong. It had been the very moment he had said it didn't bother him that Ianto had to spend all week in London. His ex-girlfriend Lisa had called him when her brother needed a criminal lawyer and begged Ianto to help.

The Welshman had been surprised when Jack had shown no jealousy over him going to help Lisa out. When he had voiced his surprise, Jack had smirked and replied that he had it on very good authority Ianto liked men more than women; so he wasn't too worried.

In retrospect, Jack was seriously beginning to curse him own judgement.

Everything had been fine until Ellie had come home from nursery one day, complaining that she felt itchy. Jack had immediately checked her out and, after decided that there was no obvious signs of why she would be scratching, had given her a bath to help stop the itching and put her to bed.

When Jack woke her to take her to nursery on the Tuesday morning, he immediately noticed red spots covering the young girl's body. It became apparent quickly that the reason for her itching the previous evening had been chicken pox.

Jack, glad that Dylan had stayed at Glenys and Dafydd's overnight, called them to let them know what was wrong with their granddaughter, before calling Smith and informing them that he would have to work from home, and they would have to call in a back up officer if he was needed in the field; he couldn't leave Ellie with a baby sitter when she was contagious.

That afternoon, Jack had been surprised to hear the doorbell ringing and find Dylan being dropped off by an annoyed Gwen Cooper. Apparently, Tess had caught the chicken pox and Dylan was also scratching as well. The young boy was clutching a letter from the school, advising that there were a number of cases throughout the classes, and parents should keep a close eye on their children.

Which explained how Jack had come to be barricaded in the house with two highly contagious – and bored – children.

Jack propped the phone against his shoulder and continued rummaging around in the back of the cupboard. "It's fine," he insisted, grunting lightly as a broomstick from Halloween dislodged and hit him on the head.

"Are you sure?" Ianto asked and Jack could practically see him biting his lip. "One sick kid is bad enough. Two can be…"

"I know, Ianto," Jack snapped, finally managing to pull the toy engine free from where it had been stuck at the back of the wardrobe since they had moved into the house; apparently a sick Dylan needed it _immediately_. "I have taken care of them when they're sick before," he added, his voice less angry than it had been previously.

Ianto sighed. "Yes, but never on your own – and never both of them at the same time. I could come home?" he offered.

"No," Jack sighed, looking down in dismay at the mess he had made, before shrugging his shoulders; he would put everything away later. "You're needed there. We'll be fine. It's only for a few more days, anyway."

It took Jack another twenty minutes to assure his partner that there was nothing he could do in Cardiff that he couldn't do in London, before he said goodbye and put the phone down.

Closing his eyes and heaving a sigh, Jack seriously considered calling Ianto back and telling him to come home immediately. The lawyer was right as usual; Jack had never had to take care of their children when they were ill on his own. "No," Jack told himself firmly, shaking his head. "They're two small children, how bad can it be?" he added with a shrug of his shoulders as he grabbed one of Ellie's Barbie dolls and Dylan's truck before heading downstairs.

When he arrived in the living room, he immediately started cursing himself in his head when he saw that Dylan had distracted himself from itching by changing the channel over from what Ellie had been watching to Ben 10.

"Daddy!" Ellie cried the instant she spotted the police officer. "Dyl changed the channel and he won't put it back!" She reached out to take the remote from her brother, only to have it snatched away.

Jack sighed and grabbed the remote from his son, changing the channel back to what it had been on originally. "Dylan, stop being a brat," he instructed, placing the remote on the mantle piece and handing Ellie her Barbie. "Monster was watching Dora first. You can watch what you want after."

Dylan scowled and fell back on the couch, folding his arms across his chest as he sulked. "And you can stop that right now, young man," Jack instructed, handing Dylan his fire engine. "Don't think you can start misbehaving just because Tad isn't here."

At the mention of Ianto, both Dylan and Ellie looked up eagerly. "Is Tada coming home soon?" Ellie asked, her voice full of hope.

Jack sighed again and slumped down in an armchair. "He'll be home on Friday, Monster," he assured her. "I'll call him tonight so you can talk to him before you go to bed." Both Ellie and Dylan grinned happily at Jack's words. "But not if you don't stop arguing with each other," he threatened.

x

Jack was fast asleep on the couch, a stuffed dragon clutched to his chest as he slept. He started when he felt someone press a kiss against his forehead.

"Easy," a familiar voice whispered, placing a hand on Jack's chest when he tried to get up. "It's only me."

"Ianto?" Jack frowned in confusion, opening his eyes and watching as Ianto knelt down next to the couch. "You're supposed to be in London," he accused.

Ianto smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "It was inevitable Rick was going to get sent down; even I can't perform miracles. I didn't see the point in staying there any longer than I had to, so I came home."

Jack grinned and pushed himself up so he was leaning back on his elbows. Before he could move too far, Ianto crawled up onto the couch so that he was lying on top of his partner.

"I missed you," Ianto murmured, plucking the dragon from Jack's arms and placing it on the floor.

The police officer leant up and captured Ianto's lips in a soft kiss. "I missed you too," he murmured, running his fingers up Ianto's side.

Ianto groaned lightly and closed his eyes. "As much as I would love to fuck you right here," he whispered, running his tongue along Jack's jaw. "I've been driving all evening. All I want to do is take a shower and go to bed."

Jack pouted and Ianto smiled, leaning forward and pressing a kiss against the older man's lips. "You could always get in the shower with me?" he offered.

The other man's face lit up with a brilliant smile and Ianto chuckled. "Oh, I love the way you think, Mr Harkness." He brought a hand up and cupped his partner's cheek. "I love _you_, Ianto," he whispered.

Ianto smiled and nuzzled Jack's cheek. "I love you too, Jack," he murmured. "But come on, let's get ready for bed. It's been a long few days for both of us."

Jack scowled darkly. "Tell me about it," he grumbled. "I'm not sure which one of the terrors is more annoying when they're ill."

The lawyer chuckled and rested his forehead against Jack's. "Have they really been that bad?"

"Worse," Jack complained. "They've been going stir-crazy all day. I hate chicken pox," he muttered through clenched teeth.

Ianto smiled and kissed Jack softly. "At least you've already had it." He frowned when Jack looked away in thought. "You have had chicken pox, right?"

"I… I can't remember," Jack confessed, screwing his eyes closed. "Shit," he whimpered. "I have no idea. I'm going to have to call my mom, aren't I?"

Ianto laughed kissed him softly. "You could just wait it out and see if you start showing symptoms," he suggested. Jack still didn't look convinced and Ianto sighed. "Or you could call her now so you're not worrying about it all night," he amended. "It's not too late over there," he added, mentally calculating what time it was in Chicago.

Jack smiled and hugged Ianto tightly. "You go get the shower started," he instructed. "I won't be on the phone for long."

"You'd better not be," Ianto threatened, rolling his hip enticingly against the police officer's.

Jack groaned lightly and glared at his partner. "Tease," he muttered, glaring at Ianto darkly. "Let me call Mom before I change my mind and fuck you right here."

Ianto snickered and kissed Jack hotly. "See you in a bit," he whispered, jumping to his feet and leaving the room.

Jack seriously considered following him immediately, but the possibility that he hadn't had chicken pox as a kid was fresh in his mind and he knew Ianto was right; he needed to find out if he'd ever had it, otherwise it would be bugging him all night.

Reaching down, he rummaged around on the ground for where he had through his mobile phone earlier that evening. Stifling a yawn, he flicked the phone open and dialled his mother's number. "Hi, Mom, it's me," he greeted. "Yeah, I know it's late here, but there's something I need to ask you…"

The End


End file.
